Indonesian men do traditional dance in tourism drive

A record-breaking 10,000 people turned out in Indonesia's Aceh province on Sunday to stage a traditional dance.

The men, clad in elaborate black and yellow traditional costumes, sat in neat rows, clapping their hands on their shoulders and laps and moving in an increasingly fast-paced rhythm to a traditional song.

The saman, or 'the dance of a thousand hands', is one of the country's most popular. In 2011 it was included in the UNESCO list of items of intangible cultural heritage.

10,000 men gathered in Indonesia's Aceh Province on Sunday in order to perform a saman dance, known as 'the dance of a thousand hands', which involves clapping, singing and swaying along to a traditional beat

The men dressed in traditional black, yellow and red outfits for the record-breaking stunt which is aimed at luring tourists into visiting the province, located in the north of Indonesia's largest island of Java

While the song traditionally contains lyrics about Islamic teachings, this version was modified to sing about the importance of protecting the national park where the event took place

The stunt, which also took place last year, is aimed at increasing tourism in Aceh, a province which is best known for its application of Sharia Law and frequent public whippings which take place there

The event was aimed at attracting more visitors to the province the head of local tourism agency, Syafruddin, said.

The men, mostly from the ethnic Gayo community, made occasional wave-like movements without breaking formation.

Their song focused on the importance of protecting the province's Mount Leuser National